Germaine Greer and tall poppy parochialism

You couldn’t help but notice that Germaine Greer is in Australia promoting her latest provocative essay on the significance of rage in the social dysfunction of many indigenous men in many aboriginal communities.

Rather than engage with her argument that white Australia has failed to recognise a significant contributive cause to the poor state of aboriginal communities and that progress will be difficult until we deal with it, the MSM and our finest journalists choose to dodge the issue by pushing the conservative ‘individual responsibility’ line and defending Howard’s Intervention.

In her Age op-ed today Tracee Hutchison is critical of Greer, not for what she is saying, but because she doesn’t live here anymore so therefore she shouldn’t comment on life in ‘the colonies’.

Greer grew up here, has friends and family here, regularly returns here and no doubt reads widely about events in Australia using the same sources as does Tracee in her comfortable suburban residence so who’s to say she isn’t well-informed, even if you don’t agree with her?

Parochial piffle passed off as journalism worthy of the editorial pages! More like thinking man’s Bolt. Bolt-lite for the intellectual reader.

Like her or loathe her, one thing we can be sure of – Greer will be the subject of future historical consideration of Australian intellectual and political culture. The same can’t be said of Hutchison’s ‘journalism’.

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3 Responses

I read in The Australian some snide remark from a journalist who when he said he was sorry for interrupting Greer, at some function, she retorted ‘No you’re not’. Which was undoubtedly an accurate comment. He thought it necessary to report that she had made this remark with a ‘wine glass in her hand’. So you see, not only is she a woman and therefore wrong about everything, she’s also a drunkard.

I think the contempt between Greer and Australian journalists is mutual. Although I think she hates them more. They are thoroughly deserving of every spray of venom that comes their way.

I saw her being interviewed by Leigh Sales. Greer was clearly exasperated an exasperation that detracted from her argument. But she was quite right. This ‘get over it’ attitude that prevails in Australia is entirely heartless and ignorant.